The Arrival (National Football Team Plot)

The international break drew ever closer.

One piece of news after another spread rapidly across China's internet.

Li Luo will arrive today.

<Number confirmed! Li Luo will wear the No. 7 shirt and fight for his country.>

<The genius midfielder shining in the Bundesliga—lead us to victory!>

China VS Japan—the battle is about to begin!

<China national team head coach Perrin: I have won the Ligue 1 double, coached Benzema, Drogba, and Juninho. I know how to communicate with a genius player like Li.>

<Japanese media: China-Japan showdown! J.League stars and overseas elites gather, with an unwavering determination to win—the Blue Samurai battle the Dragon Team!>

The front-page headline of a Japanese newspaper featured an illustration: Li Luo stood with his hands in his pockets beside a towering golden dragon, both looking down upon Blue Samurai in conical hats, drawing their swords amid falling cherry blossoms.

Finally.

One piece of news completely ignited the passion of Chinese fans.

<People's Daily: The golden monkey raises his mighty cudgel; the jade heavens are swept clean of ten thousand miles of dust.>

The numbers of comments, likes, and reposts skyrocketed wildly.

-[Li Luo looks so handsome in the national team shirt!]

-[What role will Li Luo play for the national team? Can't wait.]

-[I've finally lived to see this day. A Chinese player returning home as the midfield core of a Bundesliga powerhouse... Am I watching an anime?]

-[They'll definitely let Li Luo play, right?]

-[We absolutely can't lose to Japan on home soil. Go!]

-[As always, don't put too much pressure on Li Luo. Football is a team sport. Win or lose, we need to be tolerant, understanding, and supportive!]

-[That People's Daily headline has a deeper meaning.]

In 2014, Germany won the World Cup, and its national team shirts achieved record-breaking sales in the Chinese market.

Not to mention that these were Li Luo's national team shirts.

The moment they went on sale, they sold out.

No one could stop the Chinese fans' enthusiasm for buying.

The buzz around Li Luo's return to China surpassed that of any celebrity.

Even all kinds of knockoff games, regardless of genre or content, forced in collaborations with "cartoon Li Luo."

Baiyun Airport.

Li Luo walked out through the arrivals gate.

He was greeted by cheers like crashing waves.

Red flags fluttered in the wind.

A sea of red.

Countless supporters wearing national team shirts screamed his name at the top of their lungs:

"Li Luo!!!"

"Li Luo!!!"

"Li Luo!!!"

Their passion blazed like fire.

At that moment, Li Luo's heart surged with emotion, and he felt an indescribable excitement.

Tom stared at the scene in amazement. "Li, this is the treatment of a crown prince... What does Manchester even count for... No, no, no, I didn't mean it like that!"

There were not many people traveling with him. He had not brought Manchester United's chef, fitness coach, or personal assistant along.

His luggage was kept to a minimum as well.

The genius midfielder returning home had no airs about him, much less any intention of acting like a star.

Li Luo walked slowly, enthusiastically signing autographs, shaking hands, and taking photos with fans all the way.

Click!

Camera flashes flickered without pause.

Reporters from major media outlets had already set up their cameras.

They pressed their shutters, capturing every moment.

"Li Luo, welcome home."

Not far away.

"Little Li..."

"Is 'Little Li' something you get to call me?"

"..."

The China national team representatives had been waiting for quite some time. They jogged over and warmly greeted Li Luo.

There was no time for small talk.

Li Luo hurriedly waved goodbye to the fans.

CCTV-5 broadcast the entire event live.

The comments flooded the screen.

-[What do you think Li Luo is feeling right now?]

-[I am Ying Zheng, King of Qin. Today, I sincerely invite you to join me and help me conquer the six states and unite the realm.]

-[For this northern campaign against the Xiongnu, I wish to appoint you as commander-in-chief.]

-[Sir, that big-eared fellow has come calling for the third time. He says the Han Dynasty is weak and that he wishes to save the people of the world...]

-

Faraway Great Britain.

Countless Manchester United fans were also keeping an eye on the crown prince's movements.

Van Gaal straightened the red tie on his chest and said seriously, "There are still six days until the match. Manchester United should provide China with some technical support as well. For Li's national team debut, China absolutely cannot play too embarrassingly."

"Let them fully unleash Li's talent."

Giggs looked stunned. "What technical support can we provide? Li has only played one Premier League match."

Some fans were rather mischievous.

They even called Manchester United the Premier League's China national team...

China.

The business van slowly drove away from the airport.

Pfft.

Assistant Coach Li blew at his bangs, then turned and extended a hand toward the Chinese prodigy in the back seat. "You must be exhausted after such a long journey."

"Not at all."

The two shook hands.

Li Luo looked at the scenery outside the window and could not help yawning.

He had to get back to the hotel quickly and adjust to the time difference.

Gradually.

He accidentally fell asleep.

Tom was naturally sociable, and he soon struck up an animated conversation with the national team's assistant coaches.

He had graduated from Loughborough University with a degree in sports management before later joining Manchester United's technical staff. He was no fool.

"China has players with good technique at their feet. For example... look at this."

Assistant Coach Li handed Tom a tablet.

It played clips of smooth, flowing attacks.

"Guangzhou R&F and Yanbian Funde are the Chinese Super League's representatives of possession-based football."

"Especially the latter. During the big-money era, they were an ordinary team without any star foreign players."

"Their effective playing time is very high."

"Most other clubs have around thirty to forty-seven minutes of effective playing time."

"No matter who these two clubs face, their effective playing time exceeds fifty-eight minutes! Whenever their players go down, they immediately get back up. They do not argue with the referee and actively throw themselves straight back into the match..."

After hearing this introduction.

Tom's eyes suddenly lit up. "Their technical ability is decent, and they have some understanding of possession football. We could build the team around Li..."

Assistant Coach Li shook his head. "No. Most of them weren't called up to the national team."

"..."

"There's no shady business. Let me explain. It's difficult for China to select players. Those players with good technique... struggle to maintain stable passing and receiving in high-intensity matches."

"Oh! I understand now."

Tom suddenly understood.

Assistant Coach Li's expression was slightly dejected.

This time, they could not lose to Japan on home soil!

But what if they did?

The national team's temporary office.

Head coach Perrin shifted the little magnetic markers on the tactics board.

Only after taking charge of the national team did he understand Cruyff's famous saying: "Playing football is very simple. Playing simple football is difficult."

He did not entirely reject the national team's tactical understanding.

International player Gao Lin had once said in an interview: "We can't understand overly profound tactics, nor can we fulfill the coach's requirements for multiple combination-based tactical plays. We have to admit that. If players from Europe's five major leagues are university students or graduate students, then we're only high school students."

Smack.

Perrin lightly clapped his hands.

He truly could not figure out how to use the Bundesliga prodigy.

As Arsène Wenger's direct disciple, he had not learned everything, and was only good at coaching forwards.

"There isn't enough time."

"Even a famous coach like Van Gaal gave us advice..."

"No."

"Let's listen to Mr. Hecking instead."

At the same time.

Japan's national team arrived in China.

Head coach Aguirre accepted an interview with the media.

"Football is a team sport."

"China has a young genius star, but it will be difficult for him to pose a threat to us."

"Li is a commander-type central midfielder, the soul of the team. He can raise a team by a level, but... would a China team raised by one level really be our opponent?"